Tumblr launches Photoset, an iOS app focused on visual storytelling

Before Pinterest, there was Tumblr. It’s the social network giant that revolves around people blogging beautiful pictures and beautiful words, and allowing them to spread virally thanks to reblogs and likes. One of the more visual aspect about Tumblr is its ability to upload multiple pictures in the same post and run them as photosets, making it possible for artists to publish a series of photographs they’ve taken, fashionistas to upload possible date outfits to ask her followers’ opinions, or tech bloggers to showcase different angles of one gadget. No matter what you use Tumblr photosets for, the social network has recognized that the feature is popular enough to fly as its own standalone app. Today, Tumblr launches the obviously-named Photoset app for iOS users to feature pictures from their camera roll into the grid design Tumblr bloggers have come to recognize.

With the Photoset app, users can group a selection of pictures and post them on Photoset’s own network. It’s a simple and rather stunning way of storytelling in a quick and seamless manner. After you’ve selected your photos and uploaded them, you get a shortcut link to the set which you can post to Twitter, Facebook, or email to friends. Of course, you can also choose to upload it straight to Tumblr, where you have the option of adding location and caption. Your history count also lists all the photosets you’ve created in the past.

You may ask why Tumblr has decided to make a separate, standalone app instead of updating its current version, but the answer is actually quite obvious: By offering the Photoset functionality to users outside of Tumblr, the app has the opportunity to become a new go-to source for photo uploading. Now, sharing viral things via Twitter no longer has to go through the proprietary Tumblr site or app if you don’t want it to, and can instead show up as a direct link in your feed.

Still, because Photoset isn’t made to be Tumblr-specific, Tumblr users might find the app less useful. For example, you can’t queue posts for publishing, and you can’t rearrange the photos — the pictures will follow the order you select them in regardless of which one you want to be larger than the others. There are some kinks to be worked out, but at the moment, Photoset is a quick and simple way to compile a montage of pictures as a visual storyteller for bloggers and non-bloggers alike.